Do you know where this is?

Published Sunday September 8, 2013 at 6:00 am

Updated Monday September 9, 2013 at 4:57 am

Old buildings can be a headache. Such was the case with this city school, boarded up in this 1964 photo, after closing in the summer of 1956 and later suffering vandalism. The school had served its purpose and had been replaced, and was demolished just a few years after this photo was taken, a victim of urban renewal.

WORCESTER -- For many of us, the old brick schools we attended have a mellow look and evoke nostalgia.

For city and town facilities managers, the sight of them is more likely to create heartburn.

Such was likely the case with this Worcester city school, boarded up in this 1964 photo, after closing in the summer of 1956 and later suffering vandalism. The school had served its purpose and had been replaced, and was demolished just a few years after this photo was taken, a victim of urban renewal.

The initial abandonment, which happened to many schools too small for the city's needs, left behind buildings that were often still sturdy enough to be used — but without a breadth of possible uses and often without a plan.

Boarded up, they leave neighborhoods with eyesores that are a source of stress for public safety as well — a magnet for vandalism and arson.

This school, the second on the site, was in use for a little more than a hundred years before its abandonment and served the city as storage for awhile afterward.

Other uses were suggested but the rehabilitation was thought too costly and the building was demolished. The land later came into private hands, where it remains.

If the schoolchildren knew about the history of the site, they might have had fun scaring younger children with this fact: The school was built on the site of an older Worcester burial ground.

Hint: This school and its street both took their name from one of Worcester's most famous residents.

— Melissa McKeon

See tomorrow's Telegram & Gazette and www.telegram.com for the answer.